


Impractical

by sneakronicity



Category: Captain America (Movies), Marvel Cinematic Universe, The Avengers (2012)
Genre: F/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2013-06-02
Updated: 2013-06-02
Packaged: 2017-12-13 17:02:56
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,687
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/826688
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/sneakronicity/pseuds/sneakronicity
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Sequel to "Practical".  Clint returns from his mission and has only one thing on his mind.  It might not be what you would think.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Impractical

**Author's Note:**

> This is pure, unadulterated fluff with a few little easter eggs of poking fun of things I don't like. :) Also, more necklace fic! Hopefully this'll tide people over until we get new pics. As always I own nothing.

She knew she wasn’t alone in the apartment before she had even stepped foot inside, when she still stood in the hallway with the door partially open. It was a feeling, an instinct, and she felt every nerve tingle, every sense heighten… until her eyes fell on the familiar pair of boots that had been purposefully left where they would be the first thing she saw.  
  
A different thrill ran through her at the sight.    
  
Without further hesitation Natasha pushed the door open and stepped in, closing it firmly and locking it behind her. When she turned back around her eyes fell on Clint who was leaning against the doorframe of her bedroom, clad in black jeans and a t-shirt, with his arms crossed over his chest.  
  
“About time you got back,” he said by way of greeting, one side of his mouth curled upward.  
  
“I wasn’t expecting company,” she replied, kicking his boots out of the way before adding her own to the pile.  “You could have told me you would be back today.” Straightening back up she noted that the smirk had faded and an odd expression had taken its place.  
  
“Where’s the fun in that?” As detrimental as it could be to anyone’s health who tried it, Clint always did like to try to surprise her.  He didn’t seem to be enjoying it as much as usual, though, and she soon found out why. “What did you do to your hair?”  
  
Raising her hand to smooth down over the sleek, straight style, she felt self-conscious for the first time since she’d had it done.  “I got bored,” she said, a bit defensively.    
  
Pushing off the doorframe, Clint took a step closer to her. “I really gotta stop going away on these solo gigs.  Every time you do something drastic while I’m gone.” The smirk was back but he got only a roll of her eyes in return.  
  
“Excuse me for wanting to try something different,” she huffed, heading to the kitchen and pulling a glass out of one of the upper cupboards.  He quickly followed her, trying to backpedal.  
  
“No, it’s not bad, it’s just… different. I just… I never know what I’ll find when I get back,” he protested as she filled her glass with water from the tap before turning to look at him again. Her expression clearly stated that she didn’t believe him so he continued.  “Really, it’s nice. It’s…”  
  
“It’s horrible,” Natasha finally cut him off, putting him out of his misery.  “It looks like a cheap wig.”  
  
He couldn’t help but laugh at that. Drawing closer, he ran his hands back through her hair, gathering it up in the back. “Maybe if you tied it up.”  
  
He received a poke in the ribs and to his utter disappointment she stepped back from him.  “You’re going to give me hair advice now?”  
  
“Alright, alright.” He held his hands up in surrender.  Dropping his eyes down to her neck he noted that her jacket was zipped to the top, right up to her chin.  “How about clothing advice instead?  Take the coat off and stay a while.”  
  
Natasha noted the direction of his eyes and any true irritation she might have felt vanished immediately.  “I’d rather not. It’s cold in here.”  
  
Of course Clint didn’t believe that for a second, that the former Russian super spy would be cold, so he immediately jumped to conclusions which he tried to keep to himself for now. She had noticed that little spark of disappointment, though, and setting her glass on the counter she turned to walk back to the living room to hide her grin.    
  
“Come here and I’ll warm you up,” he replied, following after her and wrapping his arms around her from behind.  She swatted at his arms and pulled away.  
  
“Oh no, I still haven’t forgiven you for what you said about my hair.”  
  
“Aw come on, I didn’t say anything!” Slipping around in front of her he caught her elbows in his hands and met her eyes.  “You look beautiful. You always look beautiful. Some days I look at you and my heart stops and I can’t believe you’d want someone like me.”  
  
Natasha felt her heart beat faster at his words and her expression softened.  In her life many men had told her she was beautiful, and she knew that she was, but Clint was the only one who made her truly feel it, inside and out.  He didn’t just see her looks, her body; he saw her soul, her scars; he saw all the horrible things she had done, he saw the blood on her hands, but he still loved her, and only seeing herself as he saw her did she truly feel beautiful.  
  
She didn’t know what to say to express all of this, though, and unfortunately he took that as a cue to carry on.  “Even if you shaved your head you would still be beautiful, okay?”  After a pause he actually looked a little worried.  “Please don’t shave your head.”  
  
Natasha couldn’t keep her laughter down that time, and she finally gave in and slid her arms around his back, burying her face in his chest.  “I've missed you,” she admitted as he returned the embrace.  
  
“I missed you too,” Clint replied, letting out a contented sigh when he finally got to pull her close. God he had missed her. The weeks were long when she wasn’t with him, the nights felt endless; he never thought he would be that guy that hated sleeping alone, but now that he knew what he was missing he _did_ hate it.  
  
“I trust the mission went well?”  She had been worried about him; she didn’t say it aloud but he knew she had.  It was his first real mission since Loki messed with his head and left him broken, and the first real amount of time the two of them had spent apart since.  She had worried every day that something would go wrong, that she would get another phone call, and that she would lose him again, maybe this time for good.  It took all of her strength to not just cling to him desperately in relief.  
  
“Yeah, like clockwork. Information gathered, bad guy busted, and no injuries to report,” Clint replied lightly, adding that last one in for Natasha’s benefit.  
  
For a long time they just stood there, holding each other, until she felt a gentle tugging at the collar of her jacket, his fingertips just brushing the back of her neck.  Pulling back, she looked up at him with an eyebrow raised. “How much of my clothing did you expect to get off before I noticed?  You’re not _that_ distracting.”  
  
“Come on, Nat, it’s been three weeks,” he said.  “Can you blame me for wanting to get rid of some of these layers?”  
  
“Hmm, I suppose not,” she replied teasingly before extracting herself from his arms.  “Why don’t I go freshen up quick and you can join me in a minute?” She took a step back towards her bedroom and she swore she could visibly see him deflate.  As fun as it was to torture him for doubting her she just couldn’t stand that face.  “Oh, enough with the kicked puppy look already!”  Unzipping her coat she slipped it off quickly and tossed it aside before brushing her hair back to reveal the necklace he had been trying to get a glimpse of since she’d set foot through that door. “I told you I would wear it.  You didn’t believe me?”  
  
Just seeing the little arrow twinkling against her skin, Clint felt his heart warm and a fresh wave of love wash over him.  Christ that was cheesy, but he couldn’t help it; she turned him into a ridiculous sap. If only he could have been more discrete because now she was put out and he felt his tongue stumbling over itself while he tried to explain. “No, it wasn’t… I mean, it’s just that… I know how you feel about jewellery, how impractical it is and how it can be used against the wearer in combat and I just…”  
  
“Clint,” she said his name firmly, cutting off his babbling.  Retracing the few steps that separated them she placed one finger to his lips.  “Despite what many people seem to believe, that zipper on my suit? Does go the whole way up.”  She raised an eyebrow at him but he stayed obediently silent though he did smile behind the finger she kept pressed to his lips.  “I haven’t taken it off since you put it there yourself, okay?”  
  
His eyes softened and she could see everything she was feeling reflected back at her.  Love, longing, relief, gratitude… far too many emotions to count. Taking her hand between both of his he kissed the finger she held to his lips. "I'm sorry," he said softly.  
  
"I know," she replied.  Raising her free hand she brushed it back through his hair, lingering at the short hairs just behind his ear.    
  
"So I guess I should take it off now, huh?"  Clint ran one finger along the small silver arrow just below Natasha's throat before trailing his finger up the slim chain.  The expression he wore looked almost regretful.  
  
"I suppose," she said with a definite twinkle in her eye.  "Or you can take off everything _but_ the necklace…"  
  
The smile on his face made her heart thump a little harder.  "I like that plan much better," he said, trailing his finger back down the chain, across the pendent, then lower still, tracing along the neckline of her shirt.  
  
“Good," Natasha said, her own hand sliding around the back of his neck. "Now shut up and kiss me already.”  
  
"Sweetheart, I'll kiss you so hard I make that horrible wig of yours curl."

She laughed in surprise and he pulled her close to try to make good on that claim.  It may not have been enough to curl her hair but it _was_ enough to keep her from retaliating.  That outcome might have been even more miraculous.


End file.
